Pope Francis

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Video, with English commentary, at the link..

https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2023-12/pope-angelus-prayer-feast-holy-family-catechesis.html
Pope at Angelus: Holy Family shows God is with us in times of trial
31 December 2023, 12:06

Pope Francis celebrates the Feast of the Holy Family reflecting on how we must never lose the capacity to marvel at our own story of love, even when it seems that the negative parts prevail.
By Linda Bordoni

The Holy Family, despite the many difficulties and sorrows it faced, shows us how to marvel before God, how to invite Him among us and allow peace and love to be regenerated.

This was Pope Francis’ message during the last Angelus prayer of the year, on Sunday 31 December 2023, the Feast of the Holy Family.

Addressing the pilgrims joining him for the recitation of the Angelus, the Pope reflected on the Gospel of Luke which tells of the presentation of the Baby to the Lord (cf. Lk 2:22-40).
 
https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2023-12/pope-francis-angelus-year-end-conflicts-violence-consciences.html
Pope: May those with a stake in conflicts heed their consciences
31 December 2023, 12:52

https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2023-12/may-benedict-xvi-bless-us-and-accompany-us.html
Pope Francis: 'May Benedict XVI bless us and accompany us'
31 December 2023, 13:33

https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/angelus/2023.index.html
Angelus - Regina Cæli 2023
Angelus, 31 December 2023, Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph

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Video, with English commentary, at the link..

https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2023-12/pope-at-te-deum-may-our-hearts-be-filled-with-gratitude-hope.html
Pope at Te Deum: May our hearts be filled with gratitude and hope
31 December 2023, 17:43

Pope Francis presides at the annual celebration of “first vespers,” or evening prayer, for the vigil of the solemnity of Mary, Mother of God, on Dec. 31, 2023. | Credit: Vatican Media

Pope Francis presides over the traditional end of the year celebration of First Vespers on the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God, and the singing of the Te Deum, the Church’s solemn hymn of Thanksgiving for the past year, taking place in Saint Peter's Basilica on New Year's Eve.
By Thaddeus Jones

Pope Francis led the 31 December evening celebration of First Vespers on the Solmenity of Mary, Mother of God, and the singing of the Te Deum hymn of Thanksgiving for the past year, in Saint Peter's Basilica. Around 6,500 participants gathered in the Basilica for the traditional end-of-the-year celebration. Many others awaited the Pope outside the Basilica following the celebration as he made his traditional in-person visit to the Nativity Scene in Saint Peter's Square next to the tall Christmas tree.

In his homily for the occasion, Pope Francis reflected on gratitude and hope and how faith enables us to live both differently from a worldy mentality. That is because "faith in Jesus Christ, God incarnate, born of the Virgin Mary, gives a new way of experiencing time and life" helping us be grateful to God and see the future with hope that goes beyond a feeling of satisfaction and optimism.
 
https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/homilies/2023.index.html
Homilies 2023
Celebration of Vespers and Te Deum in Thanksgiving for the past year (31 December 2023)

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Video, with English commentary, at the link..

https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2024-01/pope-at-mass-let-us-entrust-the-new-year-to-the-mother-of-god.html
Pope at Mass: Let us entrust the New Year to the Mother of God
01 January 2024, 10:44

In his homily at the New Year's Day Mass celebrating the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God, Pope Francis calls on us to "entrust this coming year to the Mother of God" and consecrate our lives to her. With her "tender love...she will lead us to Jesus." On this day the Church also marks the World Day of Peace.
By Thaddeus Jones

Presiding over the morning Mass in Saint Peter's Basilica on New Year's Day, Pope Francis spoke about this day when we celebrate in a special way the Holy Mother of God, "a simple phrase that confesses the Lord’s eternal covenant with us." January 1st marks the Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God, and also the day the Church marks the World Day of Peace.
 
https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/homilies/2024.index.html
Homilies 2024
Holy Mass on the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God (1st January 2024)

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256411/pope-francis-asks-mary-s-intercession-in-world-day-of-peace-video
Pope Francis asks Mary’s intercession in World Day of Peace video
By Jonathan Liedl
Rome Newsroom, Jan 1, 2024 / 09:00 am

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/253191/why-are-the-solemnity-of-mary-and-the-world-day-of-peace-on-the-same-day
Why are the solemnity of Mary and the World Day of Peace celebrated on the same day?
By Katie Yoder
Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jan 1, 2024 / 04:00 am

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Video, with English commentary, at the link..

https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2024-01/pope-francis-solemnity-mary-mother-god-angelus-love.html
Pope at Angelus: Love opens paths for peace, never suffocating others
01 January 2024, 12:05

At the Angelus prayer on the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God, Pope Francis recalls that love should be filled with kindness and respect, never seeking to dominate those we love.
By Devin Watkins

Pope Francis prayed the traditional noon-day prayer of the Angelus on Monday, as the Church celebrated the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God, and the 57th World Day of Peace.

In his reflection ahead of the Marian prayer, the Pope encouraged Christians to place the New Year under the “caring gaze” of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

He noted that the day’s Gospel reading depicts Mary as remaining “in a silence filled with wonder and adoration for the marvels that God is performing,” as the shepherds come to worship her Son, Jesus.

Mary, said the Pope, “makes room within herself for the One who is born. In silence and adoration, she places Jesus at the center and bears witness to Him as the Savior.”
 
https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/angelus/2024.index.html
Angelus - Regina Cæli 2024
Angelus, 1st January 2024, Solemnity of Mary, the Holy Mother of God

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https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2024-01/pope-francis-mourns-lives-lost-in-deadly-japan-earthquake.html

Pope Francis mourns lives lost in deadly Japan earthquake
02 January 2024, 14:14

Pope Francis sends his condolences to the people of Japan, offering his consolation and prayers in the wake of a powerful earthquake that killed at least 48 people.
By Deborah Castellano Lubov

Pope Francis has expressed his closeness to those suffering and who have lost loved ones in a deadly earthquake in central Japan that has claimed at least 48 lives.

According to a telegram sent on the Pope's behalf by Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, on Tuesday, the Pope was "deeply saddened to learn of the loss of life and damage caused by the earthquake in the Ishikawa prefecture."

A powerful earthquake struck central Japan on Monday, triggering warnings for residents to evacuate some areas on its west coast, destroying buildings, knocking out power to thousands of homes, and disrupting travel to the region.
 

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Video, with English text, at the link...

https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2024-01/pope-francis-january-prayer-intention-gift-diversity-church.html
Pope’s January prayer intention: For gift of diversity in the Church
02 January 2024, 16:00

Pope Francis releases his prayer intention for the month of January, and invites Christians to embrace the diversity of charisms in the Church as a richness.
By Devin Watkins

“Let us pray that the Spirit help us recognize the gift of different charisms within the Christian communities, and to discover the richness of different ritual traditions within the Catholic Church.”

As the new year got underway, Pope Francis released a video to accompany his prayer intention for the month of January 2024, during which Christians celebrate the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, on 18-25 January.

In the video, the Pope urged Christians to unite our prayers to his “for the gift of diversity in the Church,” since diversity is an opportunity to “rejoice”.

He noted that diversity and unity were already present in the early Christian communities, adding that the tension brought about by diversity “had to be resolved on a higher level.”
 

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256420/these-are-pope-francis-prayer-intentions-for-2024
These are Pope Francis’ prayer intentions for 2024
By Francesca Pollio Fenton
CNA Staff, Jan 2, 2024 / 14:50 pm

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Video, with English commentary, at the link..

https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2024-01/pope-francis-audience-vice-virtues-spiritual-combat.html
Pope at Audience: God’s grace helps us triumph in spiritual combat
03 January 2024, 09:22

At the weekly General Audience, Pope Francis continues his catechesis on vices and virtues, and recalls that Christian life is filled with opportunities to turn spiritual struggles into moments of grace.
By Devin Watkins

Pope Francis picked up his catechesis series on vices and virtues at the Wednesday General Audience, focusing his reflections on spiritual combat.

The Pope said that our Christian life is never “linear or devoid of struggle,” but rather requires “continuous combat.”

He pointed to the oil with which Christians are first anointed at Baptism, saying it contains no fragrance, as if to announce that “life is a struggle.”

“The anointing of the catechumens immediately makes it clear that the Christian is not spared from struggle,” he said. “Our existence, like that of everyone else, must enter the arena, because life is a succession of trials and temptations.”
 
https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2024-01/pope-remembers-victims-of-conflicts-saying-war-is-madness.html
Pope remembers victims of conflicts, saying war is madness
03 January 2024, 11:29

https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/audiences/2024.index.html
Audiences 2024
General Audience of 3 January 2024 - Cycle of Catechesis. Vices and Virtues. 2. The spiritual striving

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https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256428/italian-priest-excommunicated-for-calling-pope-francis-a-usurper

Italian priest excommunicated for calling Pope Francis a ‘usurper’
By Courtney Mares
Rome Newsroom, Jan 3, 2024 / 11:08 am

An Italian priest has been excommunicated by his local bishop for saying in a homily that Pope Francis “is not the pope” and calling him “a usurper.”

The Diocese of Livorno in Tuscany issued a decree on Jan. 1 notifying Catholics that Father Ramon Guidetti “publicly committed a schismatic act” during Mass and has ipso facto incurred “latae sententiae excommunication,” or an automatic excommunication.

Bishop Simone Giusti informed his diocese that Catholics are not to attend any Masses offered by the excommunicated priest or they would also “incur the very serious penalty of excommunication.”

The bishop cited Canon 751, which defines schism as “the refusal of submission to the Supreme Pontiff or of communion with the members of the Church subject to him.”
 

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Re: Fiducia Supplicans

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256437/cardinal-fernandez-vaticans-same-sex-blessings-guidance-is-a-clear-answer-to-german-bishops
Cardinal Fernández: Vatican’s same-sex blessings guidance is ‘clear answer’ to German bishops
By Jonathan Liedl
Rome Newsroom, Jan 3, 2024 / 18:20 pm

Amid significant confusion about the Vatican’s recent guidance on same-sex blessings, the document’s architect has lashed out at those advancing the most liberal interpretation: Catholic leadership in Germany.

Cardinal Victor Manuel Fernández, prefect of the Vatican’s Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) and longtime theological adviser to Pope Francis, described Fiducia Supplicans as a “clear answer” to German plans to formalize liturgical blessings for same-sex couples, a move that is explicitly forbidden by the Dec. 18 guidance.

“It is not the answer that people in two or three countries would like to have,” Fernández said of Fiducia Supplicans in a Jan. 3 interview with the German Catholic newspaper Die Tagespost. “Rather, it is a pastoral response that everyone could accept, albeit with difficulty.”

The Vatican’s guidance proposes the possibility of “spontaneous blessings” for same-sex couples and those in “irregular relations” but “without officially validating their status or changing in any way the Church’s perennial teaching on marriage.” To avoid confusion, Fiducia Supplicans prohibits the promotion of formalized blessings and the use of any clothing or symbols that could give the impression of a marital blessing.

Members of the controversial German Synodal Way, a collaboration between the German Bishops’ Conference (DBK) and a powerful lay lobby (ZdK), overwhelmingly approved developing formalized ritual texts for same-sex blessings at a March 2023 assembly in Frankfurt.
 

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https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2024-01/pope-francis-france-missionary-fraternity-cities-audience.html

Pope Francis: Our wounded cities need healing balm of fraternity
04 January 2024, 10:54

Pope Francis meets with a French missionary fraternity dedicated to working in cities, and praises their efforts to bring God’s tenderness and compassion to the existential peripheries of urban areas.
By Devin Watkins

As the Missionary Fraternity of the Cities were on pilgrimage to Rome, Pope Francis met with the France-based Catholic organization on Thursday in an audience in the Vatican.

The missionaries serve people in marginalized and underprivileged parts of cities, and seek to bring pastoral care and the message of the Gospel to people on the peripheries of society.

In his prepared remarks, Pope Francis invited the Fraternity’s members to draw on the examples of Saints Peter and Paul to rekindle their missionary zeal.
 
https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/speeches/2024/january.index.html
Speeches 2024 January
To a young Delegation from the "Fraternité Missionnaire des Cités" (4 January 2024)

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https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2024-01/pope-we-need-kind-and-prophetic-communication-to-disarm-conflict.html

Pope: Communication needs to be 'kind and prophetic' to disarm conflict
04 January 2024, 12:42

Meeting members of the Association of German Catholic Journalists, Pope Francis highlights the role of Catholic communicators in providing truthful information while not fueling conflict, even within the Church.
By Lisa Zengarini

Pope Francis on Thursday welcomed to the Vatican a 30-person delegation of the Association of Catholic Journalists in Germany (Gesellschaft Katholischer Publizisten Deutschlands - GKP) celebrating its 75 years of foundation.

In his prepared remarks, which were handed out to those present in the Consistory Hall, Pope Francis encouraged the German journalists to pursue the longstanding engagement of their association in promoting ecumenical and interreligious dialogue, peace, freedom, and human dignity, which has been its mission since its onset in 1948.
 
https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/speeches/2024/january.index.html
Speeches 2024 January
To a Delegation from the Society of Catholic Publicists of Germany (Gesellschaft katholischer Publizisten Deutschlands) (4 January 2024)

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https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2024-01/pope-bear-witness-to-god-in-every-spherefrancis.html

Pope: Bear witness to God in every sphere
04 January 2024, 15:12

During his audience with members of the Catholic University of Sant'Antonio in Murcia, Spain, Pope Francis invites the faithful to imitate God's love in all they do and wherever they are.
By Deborah Castellano Lubov

Wherever you are, bear witness to God's love and exemplify His closeness through your good deeds... This was at the heart of Pope Francis' address on Thursday morning in the Vatican to members of Spain's Catholic University of Sant'Antonio of Murcia.
 
https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/speeches/2024/january.index.html
Speeches 2024 January
To Members of the San Antonio Catholic University of Murcia (Spain) (4 January 2024)

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New Pope Francis' interview: The monthly magazine of the Franciscans of the Sacred Convent in Assisi

https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2024-01/pope-francis-interview-franciscan-magazine-francesco-patrono.html
Pope to Franciscan magazine: Build bridges of peace in a world of war
04 January 2024, 12:53

Pope Francis grants an interview to the monthly magazine of the Franciscans of the Sacred Convent in Assisi and invites them to be "apostles of reconciliation and forgiveness" in a world ravaged by warns
By Francesca Merlo

“There is so much cruelty, that is why I ask for bridges of peace!” says Pope Francis in an interview granted to the monthly magazine San Francesco Patrono d'Italia (Saint Francis Patron of Italy), published by the friars of the Sacred Convent in Assisi.

In the January issue, the Pope once again asked that we be instruments of peace by building bridges and stretching out our hands to our brothers and sisters in need. Since the end of the Second World War, the Pope noted, the world has not ceased to make wars everywhere: we see Palestine and Ukraine well because they are close to us. The Holy Father also added that the times in which we are living are delicate and that there are many people in prison for political reasons. When faced with such cruelty, Pope Francis stresses that we need bridges. “Build bridges” he stressed.
 

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Update: DDF clarifies application of ‘Fiducia supplicans’

https://www.vaticannews.va/en/vatican-city/news/2024-01/dicastery-for-the-doctrine-of-the-faith-on-fiducia-supplicans.html
Dicastery for Doctrine of the Faith clarifies application of ‘Fiducia supplicans’
04 January 2024, 11:55

In a statement signed by the Cardinal prefect and the secretary, the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith clarifies that ‘Fiducia supplicans’ does not change the doctrine on marriage; that bishops are able to discern the application of the document according to context; and that pastoral blessings are not comparable to liturgical and ritualized blessings. The full text of the statement is presented below.

Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith
Press release concerning the reception of Fiducia supplicans
4 January 2024

We are writing this Press Release to help clarify the reception of Fiducia supplicans, while recommending at the same time a full and calm reading of the Declaration so as to better understand its meaning and purpose.

1. Doctrine

The understandable statements of some Episcopal Conferences regarding the document Fiducia supplicans have the value of highlighting the need for a more extended period of pastoral reflection. What is expressed by these Episcopal Conferences cannot be interpreted as doctrinal opposition, because the document is clear and definitive about marriage and sexuality. There are several indisputable phrases in the Declaration that leave this in no doubt:

«This Declaration remains firm on the traditional doctrine of the Church about marriage, not allowing any type of liturgical rite or blessing similar to a liturgical rite that can create confusion». One acts in these situations of couples in irregular situations «without officially validating their status or changing in any way the Church’s perennial teaching on marriage» (Presentation).

«Therefore, rites and prayers that could create confusion between what constitutes marriage – which is the “exclusive, stable, and indissoluble union between a man and a woman, naturally open to the generation of children” – and what contradicts it are inadmissible. This conviction is grounded in the perennial Catholic doctrine of marriage; it is only in this context that sexual relations find their natural, proper, and fully human meaning. The Church’s doctrine on this point remains firm» (4).

«Such is also the meaning of the Responsum of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, which states that the Church does not have the power to impart blessings on unions of persons of the same sex» (5).

«For this reason, since the Church has always considered only those sexual relations that are lived out within marriage to be morally licit, the Church does not have the power to confer its liturgical blessing when that would somehow offer a form of moral legitimacy to a union that presumes to be a marriage or to an extra-marital sexual practice» (11).

Evidently, there is no room to distance ourselves doctrinally from this Declaration or to consider it heretical, contrary to the Tradition of the Church or blasphemous.
 

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256439/vatican-responds-to-widespread-backlash-on-same-sex-blessing-directive
Vatican responds to widespread backlash on same-sex blessing directive
By Courtney Mares
Vatican City, Jan 4, 2024 / 10:10 am

https://cruxnow.com/vatican/2024/01/vatican-insists-decree-on-same-sex-blessings-not-heretical-blasphemous
Vatican insists decree on same-sex blessings not ‘heretical, blasphemous’
By Elise Ann Allen
Jan 4, 2024

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Re: DDF clarificati0n of ‘Fiducia supplicans’ (Jan 4, 2024}

https://www.ncregister.com/commentaries/fiducia-supplicans-2-0
‘Fiducia Supplicans’ 2.0

COMMENTARY: The Jan. 4 press release on the Dec. 18 declaration from the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith shows its prefect distancing himself from his own document.
Father Raymond J. de Souza
Commentaries
January 4, 2024

When Pope Francis appointed Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández to be the prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) in July, he took the unusual step of writing a letter to accompany the appointment.

“What I expect from you is certainly something very different,” he wrote.

The Holy Father got all that, and then some.

No prefect has ever conducted himself quite like Cardinal Fernández now does, frantically trying to contain the fractures opened up by Fiducia Supplicans.

On Dec. 18, Fiducia Supplicans was released by the DDF. The document  declared that “what has been said in this Declaration regarding the blessings of same-sex couples is sufficient” and thus “no further responses should be expected about possible ways to regulate details or practicalities regarding blessings of this type.”

The prefect then began a flurry of interviews offering commentary upon his own work. That didn’t seem to do the trick, as bishops all over the world expressed their extreme dismay.

So, on Jan. 4, Cardinal Fernández issued a sort of Fiducia Supplicans 2.0, a lengthy “press release” about the declaration. This particular “no further response” was almost half as long as the original document.

The status of Fiducia Supplicans is a “declaration” of the DDF, issued with papal approval, thereby making it part of the ordinary papal magisterium. In 2021, another DDF document, styled a responsum, was also issued with papal approval. Helpfully, for comparative purposes, it addressed the same subject, namely blessings for same-sex couples. Unhelpfully for the current moment, it taught the complete opposite, flatly prohibiting what Fiducia Supplicans permits. So while “no further responses” were promised, Fiducia Supplicans always invited further elaboration. Having contradicted the same Pope, on the same subject, at the same level of magisterial authority, something more would have to be said. Hence cometh the “press release” from the prefect.

The release is not a magisterial document at all. It is not a declaration, nor a responsum, not even an airborne papal press conference. It has no authority whatsoever. While certainly of interest as to the mind of the prefect, it cannot officially clarify the teaching of Fiducia Supplicans; it cannot resolve the contradictions and confusions. Only another DDF document could do that, which itself would be put alongside Fiducia Supplicans (2023) and the responsum (2021).

Is that where Cardinal Fernández is headed in his mandate to be “very different”?
 

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https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2024-01/pope-deeply-saddened-for-lives-lost-in-iran-explosions.html

Pope ‘deeply saddened’ for lives lost in Iran explosions
05 January 2024, 09:30

Pope Francis expresses his heartfelt condolences, sorrow, and prayers for those who were killed or injured by explosions in Kerman, Iran, and for those who mourn their loss.
By Deborah Castellano Lubov

Pope Francis is deeply saddened by the loss of life following the deadly explosions in Kerman, Iran, on Wednesday and is praying for those who died or were injured, and for their grieving families.

The Holy Father's condolences were conveyed in a telegram sent Friday by Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, on his behalf.

The Pope was "deeply saddened to learn of the loss of life caused by the recent explosions in Kerman," saying he sent "the assurance of his prayers for those who have died and for their grieving families."

Pope Francis also sent his "spiritual solidarity with the injured" and invoked "upon all the people of Iran the Almighty's blessings of wisdom and peace."
 

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https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2024-01/pope-encourages-italian-coop-to-live-active-charity.html

Pope encourages Italian cooperative to live active charity
05 January 2024, 11:43

Speaking to members of Unicoop Florence and The Heart Melts Foundation, Pope Francis says the mystery of the Lord’s Incarnation shows us that being close to those in need is “the privileged way to encounter Him.”
By Christopher Wells

Pope Francis praised members of Unicoop Florence and "The Hearts Melts" Foundation for their years of service to the neediest members of society, highlighting their work in addressing situations of economic poverty, loneliness, and the need for culture and education.

In addition to traditional charitable works, such as providing food and financial aid, the consumer cooperative and its associated foundation have also used activities such as hiking and providing opportunities to appreciate literature, art, and music in their outreach.

Referring to the cooperative’s foundation fifty years ago, the Pope highlighted their work of safeguarding the interests of consumers and their health and safety, especially through improving education.
 
https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/speeches/2024/january.index.html
Speeches 2024 January
To Members of Unicoop Florence, and the “Il Cuore si scioglie” Foundation (5 January 2024)

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https://www.vaticannews.va/en/vatican-city/news/2024-01/vatican-mater-ecclesiae-monastery-benedictine-nuns.html

Benedictine Nuns move into Mater Ecclesiae Monastery
04 January 2024, 18:42

Six nuns of the Benedictine Order from the Abbey of Santa Scholastica in Victoria, Argentina, accompanied by their Abbess, are welcomed in the Vatican by the president of the Governorate. They will form a monastic community in the Monastery, which served as Benedict XVI’s home after his resignation and until his death.
By Salvatore Cernuzio

The Argentine Benedictine nuns invited by Pope Francis to reside in Mater Ecclesiae, the monastery in the heart of the Vatican Gardens that was the home of the Pope Emeritus, Benedict XVI, for almost a decade after his historic resignation, arrived on Wednesday morning, January 3rd.

The six nuns belong to the Benedictine Order of the Abbey of Santa Scholastica in Victoria, Buenos Aires Province (Diocese of San Isidro), Argentina. The Pope had invited them with a handwritten letter dated October 1, 2023, and the nuns "generously accepted the invitation."
 

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https://cruxnow.com/church-in-the-usa/2024/01/vatican-probe-finds-no-crimes-by-ex-minnesota-archbishop-but-imprudent-actions

Vatican probe finds no crimes by ex-Minnesota archbishop, but ‘imprudent’ actions
By John Lavenburg
Jan 6, 2024

NEW YORK – A Vatican investigation into alleged misconduct by former Saint Paul & Minneapolis Archbishop John Nienstedt has cleared him of committing any canonical crime, but determined that certain “imprudent” actions warranted limitations placed on his ministerial ability.

“After reviewing all of the information gathered, the Dicasteries for Bishops and for the Doctrine of the Faith concluded that the available evidence did not support a finding that Archbishop Nienstedt had committed any canonical delict (crime),” Archbishop Bernard Hebda of Saint Paul & Minneapolis announced Jan.5.

“Accordingly, the allegations against Archbishop Nienstedt were deemed unfounded,” said Hebda, who is a former official of the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts.

However, Hebda said that while the investigation didn’t find any criminal conduct, “several instances of ‘imprudent’ actions by Nienstedt were brought to light.” These actions don’t warrant further investigation or action, Hebda said, but he added that they led Pope Francis to take the following administrative actions:
 

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Re: Synod on Synodality

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256461/american-dioceses-will-hold-local-synod-listening-sessions-through-lent-2024
American dioceses will hold local synod ‘listening sessions’ through Lent 2024
By Tyler Arnold
Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jan 6, 2024 / 09:00 am

The synodal process promoted by Pope Francis is coming to dioceses across the United States, each of which is being asked to hold “listening sessions” throughout Lent about the structure and organization of the Church.

Pope Francis initiated the worldwide Synod on Synodality in October 2021 and held the first global assembly at the Vatican in October 2023. The gathering included cardinals, bishops, members of the clergy, and lay Catholics and centered on discussions about the structure and organization of the Church, along with other topics. The Vatican will hold the final meeting of the synod in October of this year.

Per Vatican instructions, each diocese is expected to host local gatherings to discuss similar questions with members of the clergy and lay Catholics. The guidelines for American dioceses, set by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, urge clergy and lay Catholics to pray and spiritually prepare for local meetings through the beginning of 2024 and hold between two and three “listening sessions” during Lent.

The USCCB is requesting that the dioceses focus on two “guiding questions”: